Motor Size for 14 Foot Aluminum

[HunterDave]

It's probably been discussed before but I couldn't find it.

I've got a 14 foot tinny that I've been shopping around to get an outboard motor for. I found a decent deal on a 15hp but I'm not sure if that would be enough motor. The biggest lakes that I'd fish with the boat would be Lac Lannonne and Lac Ste Anne but I would probably fish Cold Lake a couple of times a year. Would a 15hp do it or do I need to look for something bigger?

[waterninja]

dave, no offence but there are just to many variables for anyone to advice you on this one. i just hope you have a nice day on the water and get back safe.
when i say anyone i only mean me.

[Double-Eh]

I have a 14 foot aluminum boat, 3 benches. Fairly old and heavy. Takes 3 people to carry it, though 2 can do it with some hard work.

I have a 5 hp mercury and it moves it jut fine. I just go out to where i want to be and either anchor down and let current push me. I move at a what I would say is a light jog when in high. On low it's just a little fast for trolling.

I pretty much just ambiguously have you no answer. But it really depends what you want. I'm perfectly happy with my dingy as it gets me to where the fishes are.

[Shmag]

I have an old old evinrude 18 hp that moved my last 14 footer around pretty good. As mentioned...so many factors...mostly weight load.

What is your 14 ft rated for hp wise, guessing in the 30 hp range ?

Hey Dave, if you're not in a huge rush or can find open water you're more than welcome to try my 18hp. Might give you a good indication of performance. I know slave river is open from the mouth of the lake to the weir, maybe more places are starting to open up to the south with the warmer weather. Its an 18 inch shaft from the transom clamp to the cavitation plate above the prop... I can get it to you if you want to try it.

[Kim473]

A buddy has a 14ft and had a 10hp on it. changed up to a 25hp and is much happier with it. On Calling lake once and the waves picked up. We would have been swamped with the waves coming over the back end of the boat with the 10hp or would have had to take the shortest route to shore. The 25hp on his is just right. Pushes it about 20 - 25 mph on a calm day with three people and fishing gear. A 10 or 15 hp is good for small lakes and calm water but a 25hp is much better.

[Eddy62]

9.9 gets you on most lakes.... i would prefer a 25 as i have a 16 foot tinner. and switch up as needed.

[fish gunner]

I have fished some big lakes with a 9.9 on 14' .I now use a 20 and it makes getting around easier . I have used it on a friends Lund 16' pushes it down the lake fine . The difference is you don't troll every where like with a 9.9

[tonypower]

I have a 15hp johnson on my 14ft. I only got it last year and used it twice. It seams to move pretty good. I was a little scared to open it up all the way because it felt like to boat was going to flip. lol Might be from lack of experience.

[FishingFrenzy]

Depends alot on the boat. I have a lighter weight, narrower, 14ft thats only rated for a 12hp motor, and the 9.9 I have for it is plenty. I can get two guys and gear up on plane, 3 guys it plows water at about 10mph. Goes plenty fast for me, fishing on relatively small lakes. I cant say i'd take it far from the launch on slave or calling....

Even the 9.9 can be a little scary as the transom sits very low in the water and if you let off the throttle suddenly you will take water over the back. From full speed you have to be damn careful slowing down as to not take wake from the motor, over the transom.


Thats just my boat, not sure what yours is like. You will probably be best off maxing out the horsepower, from what i've heard from other guys when I was looking for my motor last year.

[Big Red 250]

I have a 20hp on my 14 ft lund, had it for many years with no problems, before that I had an old 18 johnson on it, was good too. have also thought about going up to a 25hp. For one day I did try a 35 Johnson tiller but that scared the crap outa me. My dad had a 25 yamaha on his Edson 14ft. It was great.
If you do alot of trolling a 9.9 is good.

[yetiseeker]

I have a 14' harbercraft boat - quite light - I have a 15hp outboard on the boat and it pushes me around 20mph with myself and gear in the boat. When I add a second person and gear, it pushes me around 18 mph. However, when I add a third person, I am down to 12 to 13 mph. It still planes out, but barely. When the waves are above the 2 foot mark - I sure wish I had a 20hp or even 25hp to keep on top of the crests - it can be a long ride to shore at times. So - if you plan on hitting some of the larger lakes, such as Cold Lake as you mentioned, I would strongly advise you go with the highest rated outboard that your boat can handle (minimum 20hp). Should you ever get into an issue with trolling too fast, you can always throw out a drift sock and it will slow you to a crawl.

And for TonyPower - regarding the feeling like your boat is going to flip - I have almost flipped my boat before too. The issue for me was I did not have enough weight in the bow of the boat. Add some gear in the bow and it will true out. Without the weight, things can be scary.

[BBJTKLE&FISHINGADVENTURES]

Dave me and my Grandpa used to have a fiberglass 14 footer and used a 2.2 hp motor got us around caught 1000's of fish together . I wouldnt go over 15 but have seen guys use 25's . I think thats alot of power for a small boat . I think Idealy a 9.9 is what you would want , should be lots to get you on plane , and get you anywhere you want to be . You might also want to add a trolling motor on that .

[JohninAB]

Depends on make and model of boat as beam, transom build, weight etc will all play a part in hp. An A-14 Lund is not going to be rated for the hp a WC 14 DLX Lund is. Rule of thumb is go at least 75% of maximun rated hp.

[pikergolf]

Dave if it's a light boat a 15 should be fine, heavier you'll want a twenty. I had a 14' with a 10 on it, we got caught in a storm in a trough between swells. The swell behind us was constantly licking at the back of the boat and we never had the power to get even a little ahead of it. I promptly bought a 20 and it was night and day. I then upgraded to a 16' boat and kept the 20, no problems, which leads me to believe a 15 will keep you out of trouble unless you have a very heavy boat.

[HunterDave]

Hey Dave, if you're not in a huge rush or can find open water you're more than welcome to try my 18hp. Might give you a good indication of performance. I know slave river is open from the mouth of the lake to the weir, maybe more places are starting to open up to the south with the warmer weather. Its an 18 inch shaft from the transom clamp to the cavitation plate above the prop... I can get it to you if you want to try it.

That's a really nice offer Shmag....Thank you!

The 14' is an old, heavy Sears but I don't know what it's rated for.

I've have a 12' aluminum with a '92 Mariner 8.8hp for the longest time. I specifically bought a small boat to haul through the bush to get to those out of the way, hard to get to lakes in Ontario back in the early '90's. It's perfect for lakes like Carson, etc except that it is very tippy because it's narrow and with two +200lb men in it the water is only 3 or 4 inches from the gunnel. With just me in the boat the back sits very low in the water.

I also had a Bayliner that I used on Lac Ste Anne but I sold it last year.

Last year I got a deal on an old Sears 14' with trailer and I refinished the boat (trailer this year) so now I have a 12' and a 14' on trailers. Initially I figured on keeping the 12' for smaller lakes and the 14' for the few times per year that I might be on Cold Lake. I was thinking about selling the 12' and just using the 14' everywhere so I have the flexibility to go on a bigger lake. After reading this thread, specifically about the trolling speed with a bigger motor (I hadn't thought about that), I may have to rethink this a bit.

95% of my fishing is on smaller lakes with Lac Ste Anne being the biggest and 50% of my fishing is trolling for trout. The rest of the time I'm either drift fishing with a jig for walleye or tossing lures along the weeds for pike.

Having too many toys is a good problem to have I guess. I would like to sell one of the two as I can't really justify having one boat specifically for fishing Cold Lake a couple of times per year.

What I'm thinking now is either putting the 8.8hp on the 14' and selling the 12' and trailer or selling the 12', trailer and motor and buying a bigger motor for the 14'. Thoughts?

[pikergolf]

Keep the 14 and go for a bigger motor, as we age stability is everything.:)

[BBJTKLE&FISHINGADVENTURES]

That's a really nice offer Shmag....Thank you!

The 14' is an old, heavy Sears but I don't know what it's rated for.

Hey Dave there should be a Metal Stamp on the Transom with Coast Guard information on what that boat should be rated for and like JohninAb says 75% of what the bill of landing says ( I think thats what its called) .

Heres a picture of what i mean http://i263.photobucket.com/albums/ii122/JOHN_CONROY/IMG_3194.jpg

[baptiste_moose]

I think the biggest factor is 2 stroke or 4 stroke. Weight on the transom is a big issue. 4's are heavy but a 9.9 and a 15 weight the same. Same motor size ( bore/stroke) with a bigger carb. To step to 20 4 stroke is heavy. 20 2 stroke would be perfect. I'd try and track down a modern 2 stroke 20 hp yamaha or 9.9 or 15 4 stroke

[HunterDave]

Keep the 14 and go for a bigger motor, as we age stability is everything.:)

Yeah, I think that might be the best route. Do you figure that 8.8hp would be too small for that 14'?

Hey Dave there should be a Metal Stamp on the Transom with Coast Guard information on what that boat should be rated for and like JohninAb says 75% of what the bill of landing says ( I think thats what its called) .

The boat is out at the trailer in Lac Ste Anne so I can't check it right now. I've been meaning to go out there on the sled while there's still snow on the ground. I figure that I have a couple of months yet to decide what to do.

[ak-71]

I think the biggest factor is 2 stroke or 4 stroke. Weight on the transom is a big issue. 4's are heavy but a 9.9 and a 15 weight the same. Same motor size ( bore/stroke) with a bigger carb. To step to 20 4 stroke is heavy. 20 2 stroke would be perfect. I'd try and track down a modern 2 stroke 20 hp yamaha or 9.9 or 15 4 stroke

Mercury 4 stroke 15HP and 20HP are the same 115lbs dry weight.

[Willowtrail]

I run a 15 hp on my 14' on ste anne with no problems. I also run a minn kota for trolling or moving around.

Keep the bigger boat and go 15-25hp. Whatever the stamp allows you. If your out there this weekend shoot me a text, i will probably be filling my walleye tags.

[pikergolf]

Yeah, I think that might be the best route. Do you figure that 8.8hp would be too small for that 14'?
For fishing and trolling it should be fine, I would be keeping an eye on the wind though, it's a little under powered if things get hairy. See my post about my experience with the 10 hp.

[Willowtrail]

Heres an offer for you Dave. Once the ice is out we can go for a rip in your boat with my motor and you can try it out and decide if you like it.

Let me know

[sirmike68]

I used to have a 14ft Starcraft aluminum with a 40HP Merc Seapro. It would plane within the length of the boat and go accross the lake at about 35-40. Only problem was that you need a person in the front because with the motor and myself sitting in the back the nose was way in the air and virtually impossible to control at slow speeds.

[HunterDave]

Heres an offer for you Dave. Once the ice is out we can go for a rip in your boat with my motor and you can try it out and decide if you like it.

Let me know

Sure, thanks! I'm going to try that 8.8hp on it first thing this spring. I've been thinking about heading out to Lac Ste Anne this weekend as well. I'll let you know. Cheers!

[Pixel Shooter]

I agree that bigger is better Dave, check out what it is rated for. I have a 25hp Merc and been looking to upgrade to a 40hp which is almost max on my princecraft side console. hard to find a used on in great condition, if anyone hears of anything, dont be shy lol

[springfisher]

I run a 9.9 2 stroke on my 12 and 14 ft. With 2 guys and gear the 9.9 is a perfect match of weight and power. on the bigger lakes i would rather a larger boat but the 14 will do on a nice day. On the pothole lake I normaly fish my fav is the old Evinrude 4.5 on the 12ft, with that combo i can hit 12 kmh. The 9.9(jeted to 15 hp) will do 32 kmh on the 14 by myself but way scary with the bow pointing at the sun.... I am close to your lake if you want to try the 9.9 to see how she goes in the spring

[HunterDave]

Thanks fellas! I'm still not sure what I'm going to do but I'll have to decide whether or not to buy that 15hp soon I guess. I got an idea........I'm going to start a poll to see what route others would take. It could be a fun thread. :)

[Bound2Fish]

On my old 14 ft lund, I ran a 15hp. Had no issues with 3 people with gear. I found the 9.9 too small and the 15 did a great job for me. It was fast enough to rip around the lake but slow enough to troll with.

[HunterDave]

On my old 14 ft lund, I ran a 15hp. Had no issues with 3 people with gear. I found the 9.9 too small and the 15 did a great job for me. It was fast enough to rip around the lake but slow enough to troll with.

I think that my mind is set on keeping the 14' and selling the 12'.

I'm leaning towards buying the 15hp now too.

I'm probably better off selling the 12'/trailer/motor all in one package.

[Mountain Guy]

14' is probably rated for 20HP max. Not sure if $$ is a factor but the more ponies you get the more $$. Money aside I would go 20 as it's the same engine as the 15 in some makes. Once you go 25 or bigger you get a BIGGER engine.
Had a 25 merc 2 stroke on the back of my 13' inflatable and was too much motor. Both for performance and packing it from the truck to the boat.
If your rig will be trailered all the time not so much an issue, but if you have to carry the motor much you'll want to stay at 15 or 20 HP max.

[HunterDave]

There's a (90's?) 20hp Mariner for about $1500 and a '00 Merc 15hp for $900 that I saw on the internet.

Oh, it'll be trailered all right.....lol. The 14' is A LOT heavier than my 12' that I can just throw around.